From Columbus to Cortez: Conquistadors in the “New

World”

Hernan Cortez

Cortez’s life in Spain

• Minor nobility

• Sternly religiously Catholic

• Studied Latin and law

• Biographer notes, “restless, haughty, mischievous, and given to quarrelling.”

• Left for “New World” at 19 with funds from parents

A Carib Village

Cortez Invades Cuba

• Cortez given a ranch on Cuba

• Owned several gold mines

• “…extracted a great deal of gold with labor of his Indians and soon was rich…”

Cortez invades Mexico

• Cortez speaks to his men upon leaving Cuba for Mexico, recorded by Lopez de Gomora: “Certain it is, my friends and companions, that every good man of spirit strives, by his own effort, to to make himself the equal of the excellent men of his day and even of the past. And so it is that I am embarking on a great and beautiful enterprise, which will be famous in times to come, because I know in my heart that we shall take vast and wealthy lands, people such as have never been seen, and kingdoms greater than those of our monarchs.”

Spanish map of Tenochititlan before its destruction

Cortez’ Conquest

• Cortez’s army: 600-2,000 men, 15 horsemen, 15 cannons, alliances with oppressed cities.

• Aztec army of 80,000-100,000• Casualties during the siege of Tenochtitlan:

100,000 Aztecs, 500 Spaniards, 5,000-10,000 native Mexicans

Aztecs

• 1350s-1520s

• Capital city of Tenochtitlan, modern-day Mexico City, on an small island in Lake Texcoco

• City-state with military-based tribute from surrounding areas

Palace of Moctezuma

Tenochtitlan

• Population of 200,000

• Chinampas - Floating Gardens

• 1,000 sanitation workers

• Series of dykes and three causeways

• Irrigation to bring fresh water to the city

• Canals between gardens

Cortez: “World’s most beautiful city”

Cortez’s Conquest

• 1519 - Arrival• Small pox outbreak in Tenochtitlan kills

20,000-40,000 people• Moctezuma II expands Aztec empire to

its greatest size, abolishes meritocracy, widens the gap between nobles and commoners

Influence of Moors in Spain

• Mathematics and architecture

• Arabic numbering system

• Universities and degrees

• Agriculture: new crops included sugar cane, rice, citrus fruit, apricots, cotton, artichokes, and saffron

• First windmills

Mosque of Cordoba: Spain

Expulsion of Moors from Spain

• Culture of war prevailed– prized soldiers• Era of exploration• Profit motivated search for goods: silk,

spices• Gold: provided earthly comfort and

contributions to the church purchased heaven

Who Were the Moors?

The Moors were the medieval Muslim inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula, which includes Spain and Portugal.

The Moors invaded the Iberian Peninsula in 711 and called the territory Al-Andalus, an area which at its peak included what is most of Spain and Portugal, and parts Southern France.

The religious differences between the Moorish Muslims and the Christian Kingdoms of Europe resulted in centuries long conflicts.

In1492 after much conflict, Muslim rule ended in Spain and Portugal and the Christian Kingdoms expelled the Moors.

What Happened When Spain Ruled?

The Spanish, under King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, forced the remaining Jews to leave Spain, convert to Roman Catholic Christianity or be killed for not doing so.

To exert social and religious control, in 1480, Isabella and Ferdinand agreed to allow the Inquisition in Spain.